The clatter of utensils echoed across the dining table.
A peaceful breakfast hour.
The scent of Mom's doenjang-jjigae filled the living room.
I peeled the flesh off the grilled mackerel and placed it on my rice.
Chewed and swallowed.
Set down my water glass.
"I'm going to China."
Silence fell.
Dad's spoon froze mid-air.
Ha-eun dropped the rolled omelet she'd been holding in her mouth onto the table with a thud.
Mom was the first to react.
"China? Why on earth would you go there! Are you planning to emigrate or something?"
Mom's voice trembled sharply.
I scraped up the rest of my rice.
"Business trip. Apparently there's some annoying beast causing trouble beyond the northern border."
—Bang!
Ha-eun slammed the table violently.
"Are you insane?! The government's dumping their dirty work on you again!"
Ha-eun's eyes instantly became bloodshot.
"After all that suffering a year ago, you're going back there? Absolutely not. I'm posting an exposé on the Blue House bulletin board right now!"
"Sit down. You're kicking up dust at the dinner table."
I wiggled my finger at my sister as she grabbed her smartphone.
A light telekinetic force pressed down on her shoulders, forcing her back into her chair.
"Nobody's pushing me into this. I ran the numbers myself and accepted. So everyone calm down."
"Tae-ho."
Dad called my name in a heavy voice.
His usually jovial, smiling face was nowhere to be seen.
Deep worry was etched into his furrowed brow.
"This beast—is it like that imugi you coughed up blood fighting last year? If the Chinese government is desperate enough to ask you, it can't be ordinary."
At Dad's question, Mom's eyes were already reddening.
The bloody battle broadcast live a year ago.
That horrific trauma was pressing down on this living room again.
Mom grabbed my small hand tightly.
Her hand was trembling finely.
"Tae-ho. Mom doesn't need money or fame. Things are perfect just as they are. Please don't go. I can't send you into danger again."
Hot tears dropped onto the back of my hand.
I set down my chopsticks neatly.
Turned to face my family.
This wasn't a situation where I could just stubbornly refuse to go.
"It's different from that eel bastard."
I continued my explanation calmly and composedly.
"Back then I didn't know how to handle mana properly, so I had to brute force it with my body. This time, the thing has a very clear weakness."
My family's gazes fixed on my lips in unison.
"It eats metal. If the military or guild guys go in with weapons, they're just serving it dinner. Mana is pure energy. The matchup is a perfect counter. For me, it's no different from chasing off a neighborhood mutt."
Mom still gripped my hand tightly and shook her head.
"But... if something goes wrong..."
"Why would I crawl into a beast's den without thinking, just to please someone else?"
I drove in the decisive wedge.
"The compensation is solid. After this trip, I'll have an absolute protection treaty that completely blocks politicians and media from coming anywhere near our family. Plus permanent tax exemption."
"Family protection treaty...?"
"Yeah. I can legally ignore annoying official events and petty administrative summons. My peaceful recuperation life will be perfectly guaranteed by law."
Ha-eun bit her lip and countered.
"But you don't have to be the one to take this on. Nobody can force you if you just stay in Korea."
"They can't force me. But prices will go crazy."
I took a sip of water.
"The country's running out of resources right now. In exchange for taking out that monster, China's handing over safe trade routes and resources wholesale. If we don't get that, prices will skyrocket and the beef on our table will cost ten times more."
A thoroughly calculated, materialistic justification.
Far more realistic and selfish than grand missions like "for the nation" or "for humanity."
"Do I look stupid enough to bleed over beef prices? I'm going because I can definitely avoid getting hurt and definitely secure permanent peace for our family. Two days at most. By the weekend, I'll be resting on the couch in the penthouse."
At my firm declaration, Dad let out a long sigh.
He seemed to know best that he couldn't break my stubbornness.
Dad gripped my shoulder with a stern face.
"You're really confident you'll come back without a speck of dust on you."
"Of course. I promise."
Mom gently stroked my cheek.
"Don't get hurt. If you come back with even a hair out of place, Mom will really collapse."
"Don't worry. I'll come back without breaking a sweat."
I hopped off my chair.
My family's tacit permission had been granted.
Now it was time to grab the leash of those higher-ups and shake it.
I entered my room.
Pressed the call button on the secure tablet the government agent had left yesterday.
The call connected before the ringtone even finished once.
—This is the Director of the National Intelligence Service. Mr. Kang. I've been waiting for your call.
A tightly tense voice came through the receiver.
"I've reviewed the contents. I like the compensation package. I'll accept the assignment."
—Ah...! Thank you, truly, from the bottom of my heart! We'll immediately prepare for deployment...
"Wait. Let me add two more conditions."
I cut him off.
"First. An absolute protection treaty preventing media and politicians from coming near my family. And permanent tax exemption. Not verbal promises—draft a special law and bring me the documents before the operation starts tomorrow."
—Understood. We'll process it immediately through the State Council. What's the second condition?
"Don't attach any dead weight to my operation. Other Hunters or soldiers will just get in my way. Escorts can lightly clear the airspace, but I'll handle ground strikes solo with a direct hit."
—Noted. We'll delegate all operational control as you wish.
I ended the call.
Tossed the tablet onto the bed.
Evening.
I was lying in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
The door cracked open.
Ha-eun shuffled into the room hesitantly.
"What."
"Just."
Ha-eun carefully perched on the edge of my bed.
A worn talisman was clutched in her hand.
"This—when you went to fight the imugi last year, I got it from a temple. Take it this time too."
Ha-eun stuffed the talisman into my tracksuit pocket.
Her usual playful face had vanished.
Hunched shoulders.
My sister's deep anxiety transmitted clearly.
I reached out and lightly flicked her crown.
"Ow! Why'd you hit me!"
"Don't be scared. I really will be back soon."
Ha-eun rubbed her forehead and pouted.
"The day after tomorrow's dinner is definitely Korean beef omakase. You're paying."
"Fine. My card limit's loaded, so eat your fill."
Ha-eun finally smiled faintly and left the room.
I fingered the worn talisman in my pocket.
Cumbersome, but I didn't remove it.
Next morning.
Joint Chiefs of Staff underground operations control room in Yongsan.
Inside the control room with giant screens flashing.
The Air Force Chief of Staff with four stars and key staff stood in formation.
As I opened the door and entered, they all snapped to attention with synchronized boot sounds.
"Loyalty! We sincerely thank Hunter Kang Tae-ho for his decisive deployment!"
Cold sweat ran down the generals' foreheads.
I gave a perfunctory nod and approached the central briefing table.
The table was high—my chin barely reached it.
I spread mana beneath my feet and floated my body about 10cm into the air.
"Enough with the greetings. Let's keep the briefing short."
At my languid voice, the Chief of Staff hastily raised his pointer.
An operations map appeared on the screen.
"The target is currently coiled in the middle of a canyon in the Chinese border region. Within a 50km radius is its feeding zone—ground approach is absolutely impossible."
The Chief of Staff pointed at the sky with his pointer.
"Therefore, Operation ⟨Meteor⟩. We plan to drop you directly above the target from the stratosphere at 15,000 meters via special transport aircraft."
"Aerial drop. Any flies on the way down?"
"A colony of pterosaur-type mutant magical beasts has formed in the airspace around the target. To secure your drop path, two squadrons of elite fighters and A-Rank magic-type Hunters will accompany you."
The Chief of Staff advanced to the next screen.
"Just before the transport hatch opens, our forces will perfectly breach the aerial defense network. You need only focus on the landing point."
A clean operation with no excess.
Vertical drop from the stratosphere under escort by fighter squadrons and mages.
If they intercepted the small fry, it was a perfect setup to conserve stamina and finish in one shot.
"Good. When's execution?"
"Tomorrow at noon. We just finished coordinating airspace entry with China."
"Understood."
I turned and walked toward the control room door.
The staff exchanged confused glances.
"U-Um, Hunter! What about weapons support or defensive gear setup..."
"Don't need it. My body is the weapon. And don't anyone look for me until tomorrow before lunch. I need to get my body in shape."
I drove in the wedge dryly and exited the control room.
Hunter Association underground S-Rank exclusive special training facility.
A massive sealed room surrounded by superalloy armor plates mixed with imugi bone powder.
I entered and locked the heavy iron door.
The training facility was silent.
I sat cross-legged.
Floated my body in the air and closed my eyes.
Steadied my breathing.
One shot.
I wouldn't drag this into a messy brawl.
I needed to forge an absolute strike that would sever the mountain-like beast's breath in one blow.
—Whiiiiing—!
Blue mana coursing through my entire body expanded as if tearing my blood vessels.
Mana bursting outside my skin enveloped me in a sphere.
I began raising the mana density to its limit.
The air screamed as it compressed.
The mass of energy pouring from within me was like a super-dense black hole.
Gravity inside the training facility distorted and the superalloy walls began to buckle.
A monster that devours all the metal in the world.
I'll show you what the weight of pure mana that shatters metal like paper truly is.
The warm-up for tomorrow was quietly burning.
* * * * *
Next day. Operation day, noon.
Stratosphere, altitude 15,000 meters.
Inside a specially modified massive military transport aircraft.
The cargo hold temperature was dozens of degrees below zero.
Ear-splitting engine noise filled the space.
I wrapped a thin mana field around myself to maintain body temperature and oxygen.
Red warning lights signaling drop preparation began flashing.
—Beep—! Beep—!
Sharp buzzer sounds rang through the transport interior.
The red warning lights turned green.
With heavy friction sounds, the transport's rear hatch slowly opened.
Sub-zero temperatures and thin oxygen from 15,000 meters altitude rushed into the cargo hold.
I wrapped a thin mana field around myself to maintain body temperature and oxygen.
Beyond the open hatch, an endless sea of clouds spread out.
The operations commander's urgent voice came through the communicator in my ear.
—Entering target airspace! Operation Meteor, commence! Mr. Kang, godspeed!
Without hesitation, I stepped into the void.
The moment I left the transport, merciless gravity seized my body.
Fierce metallic wind howled as if tearing my eardrums.
Free fall.
Breaking through the clouds, the barren canyon region of outer China came into view.
And the swarm blackening the sky above.
Grotesque flying magical beasts with pterosaur skeletons and bat wings spotted me and began rising en masse.
—All squadrons, clear the path!
Vroooom—!
Sleek F-35 fighter squadrons poured down on either side of me, tracing elegant trajectories.
A-Rank magic-type Hunters, bodies fixed to the fighter wings with mana shields, finished their incantations simultaneously.
Dozens of massive fireballs and lightning bolts erupted in the air.
Missiles launched from the fighters struck the center of the pterosaur swarm.
Blinding flashes.
The monsters' screams and torn flesh rained down like drops.
Perfect interception with no excess.
No obstacles remained in my drop trajectory.
"Good work."
I muttered dryly and drove my gaze downward.
In the middle of the canyon, I saw the monster lying prone like a massive mountain range.
A horrific hybrid fusing an elephant's upper body with a lion's lower half.
Its hide gleamed with hideous metallic luster from years of devouring all manner of tanks and steel beams.
A calamity that devoured not only conventional weapons but even Hunters' superalloy weapons.
"So you like metal."
My descent speed broke the sound barrier.
Friction with the atmosphere heated the outer surface of the mana field surrounding my body to a glowing red.
I drew all the mana I'd compressed to the extreme in the training facility yesterday into my right foot.
A crystallization of pure energy.
The blue mana gathered at my foot distorted the surrounding space and transformed into the shape of a massive spear.
The giant magical beast sensed the energy and violently raised its head.
The massive part resembling an elephant's trunk pointed skyward.
From its tip, sharp and massive metal fragments shot up madly like anti-aircraft fire.
I didn't dodge.
The metal fragments, the moment they touched the high-density mana spear surrounding my body, evaporated without even producing a bursting sound.
Chunks of metal could never pierce the mass of pure mana.
The distance to the target closed in an instant.
The monster's massive face filled my vision.
I raised my right foot.
Mercilessly brought it down toward its steel crown.
—KWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH—!!!!
A roar like the world splitting erupted.
The moment my foot touched the monster's head, the compressed mana released all at once.
The shockwave preceded the sound.
A massive impact wave swept the canyon in a radius of dozens of kilometers in a circle.
Cliffs crumbled like tofu, and rocks from the ground shot into the air as if in zero gravity.
A massive pillar of dust rose like a mushroom cloud.
Fighters flying in the sky staggered in the shockwave and climbed to higher altitude to disengage.
Terrible dust and acrid smell obscuring vision.
As the aftermath of destruction subsided, the gray fog slowly lifted.
A massive crater gouged deep.
I stood at its center with an expressionless face.
Beneath my feet, the monster's supposedly impregnable metallic crown and hide were crushed miserably like an empty can pressed by a compactor.
Blue mana sparks circled in the air and scattered.
The beast's blood and melted metal byproducts lay wetly on the ground.
"Done."
I exhaled briefly and brushed dust off my clothes.
Gave a casual wave to the fighter squadrons circling above.
An overwhelming strike. Perfect subjugation with no excess.
Now I just needed to leave the wreckage collection to the Association guys, collect the promised special law documents, and head home.
Tonight's dinner is beef omakase.
Just as I turned to step outside the crater.
—Thud-thud.
A faint vibration rang from beneath my feet.
I stopped walking.
This wasn't the sound of collapsing rocks or cooling metal plates.
This was... a very unpleasant and alien pulsation.
I lowered my gaze.
Near the spine of the beast, perfectly crushed into a lump of meat.
The flesh that had been shattered and fused with steel was wriggling faintly with grotesque friction sounds.
A creepy movement like tens of thousands of insects clumping together to seal a wound.
I narrowed my eyes.
A chilling sensation brushed past my dry heart.
I trampled the lump of meat beneath my feet indifferently and clicked my tongue briefly.
"...How messy."
